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Few democrat gains in HK exit polls
Relax, citizens, they're talking about real democrats here.
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong pro-democracy candidates, stung by a sex scandal, have made limited gains against the Beijing camp in legislative polls as voters wary of irking their communist rulers chose stability, results showed today. The election for the 60-seat Legislative Council on Sunday had been portrayed by democrats as a virtual referendum on gaining the right to votes for all, but the sex scandal, Beijing's carrot-and-stick policies and a complicated voting system favoured pro-Beijing politicians.

The polls were marred by a delay of more than eight hours before results for a single seat were announced and when some polling stations ran out of ballot boxes. That prompted angry demands from democratic candidates for an explanation and a partial recount.

In a major blow for pro-democracy forces, their candidates managed to win just 18 directly elected seats, little changed from 17 in the last election and well below expectations despite a record 55.6 percent voter turnout. Wary not to anger China's communist rulers, voters ensured a better-than-expected showing for the pro-Beijing camp, which took 12 of the 30 directly elected seats, up from just seven in the 2000 poll, the preliminary official results showed. Results for the other 30 seats, elected by small limited professional groups such as lawyers and doctors, had yet to be released but have traditionally been dominated by the China camp. "The message we got from voters in the past few weeks is that many want ... a stable, harmonious environment so that their cousins from the north don't squash them like bugs," said Tsang Yok-hing, former chairman of the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB).
Posted by: Steve White 2004-09-13
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=43038